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Pronunciation

How to pronounce “precarious”

“precarious” is pronounced /pɹiˈkɛɹiəs/ (pree-KE-ree-uhs) in American English and /pɹɪkeəɹiəs/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “kɛ”.
The sound

Say “precarious” in 4 beats

Say it like this

precarious

/pɹiˈkɛɹiəs/

The voice you hear here is American; the British form is /pɹɪkeəɹiəs/ (see the table below), and a British voice is available in the app's settings.

4 beats
  1. pɹipɹi
  2. kɛkɛstress
  3. ɹiɹi
  4. əsəs
IPA (American)
/pɹiˈkɛɹiəs/
IPA (British)
/pɹɪkeəɹiəs/
Respelling
pree-KE-ree-uhs
Syllables
4 — pɹi-KƐ-ɹi-əs
Stress
Stress the second syllable: pɹi-KƐ-ɹi-əs. “kɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.
Part of speech
adjective
Difficulty
Pro — the sounds are ordinary, the rhythm is where it slips
Accents

American and British are not the same here

American

/pɹiˈkɛɹiəs/

British

/pɹɪkeəɹiəs/

No audio here: sayit’s voice is American, so a British button would play the American word. Read the transcription instead.

Meaning

What “precarious” means

  1. adjective

    affording no ease or reassurance

    “a precarious truce”

  2. adjective

    fraught with danger

    “dangerous waters”

  3. adjective

    not secure; beset with difficulties

    “a shaky marriage”

Say it in a sentence

“The ladder looked precarious against the wet stone wall.”
Sound by sound

The sounds inside this word

7 sounds, in the order you say them
ppɹr×2ilong ekkɛshort eɪəearss

Each sound has its own page: where the tongue goes, what it is usually confused with, and words to drill it on.

Questions

“precarious”, answered

How do you pronounce “precarious”?

“precarious” is pronounced /pɹiˈkɛɹiəs/ (pree-KE-ree-uhs) in American English and /pɹɪkeəɹiəs/ in British English — 4 syllables, stressed on “kɛ”. Build it as pɹi-KƐ-ɹi-əs, then run the second syllable a little longer than the rest and let the others reduce.

How many syllables does “precarious” have?

4: pɹi · kɛ · ɹi · əs. The beat lands on the second, “kɛ”.

Is “precarious” said differently in British English?

Yes. American English says /pɹiˈkɛɹiəs/ (pree-KE-ree-uhs); British English says /pɹɪkeəɹiəs/. Both are correct — choose the accent you are learning and stay inside it.

What does “precarious” mean?

As an adjective: affording no ease or reassurance For example: “a precarious truce” It carries 2 other senses as well — all of them said the same way.

Where is the stress in “precarious”?

Stress the second syllable: pɹi-KƐ-ɹi-əs. “kɛ” is longer, louder and a step higher; the other syllables fall away from it.

Practise this word

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